January 2006 – Røros, Norway, a remote, historic copper mining center on UNESCO’s list of priceless world historical sites, has implemented the imaging industry’s most advanced remote monitoring technology: Mikron Infrared’s (NASDQ: MIKR) DualVision system, for 24-hour surveillance and early detection of fire.

Merging visual imaging with thermal imaging and temperature measurement, the DualVision system is mounted on a pan-and-tilt head in the city’s church tower and remotely controlled from a PC at the local fire station.

The city center of Røros is under a preservation order and is listed by UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) as one of the world’s cultural treasures, in company with Versailles and the pyramids of Egypt.

A mining settlement dating from 1644, the area has many surviving buildings that are characteristic of a traditional settlement built with methods of the period. The city has preserved its 17th century layout, and its center has a distinct medieval appearance with about 80 authentic wooden houses, many with their original pitch-log facades looking out on courtyards. Both the wood-built center and a larger area around the town, with traces of 300 years of mining history, are on the World Heritage List.

DualVision is the first system to combine visual and infrared imaging/temperature measurement to produce a single composite, blended image for simple, quick analysis. The resulting composite can be viewed in an infinitely blended percentage of visual/IR, simply by moving a slider bar in the software screen. The system also provides separate infrared and visual feeds.

The DualVision system is operated from a PC at the fire station, using Mikron’s MikroSpec® Real-Time Thermal Data Acquisition and Analysis software. The software blends the thermal and IR camera feeds into a single DualVision image with correct aspect ratio and spatial area. By applying an isotherm color pallet to the IR image, hot spots are easily identified while still viewing the scene as a visual image. The composite image can be adjusted to show any percentage of the IR and visual, allowing firefighters to quickly assess an alarm situation before sending equipment to a scene.